We Only Have This Moment
by NotJess
Summary: Twelve years have passed and the Ho-kago Tea Time had long since disbanded. Mio now works for a trading company and she no longer composes nor plays music. She lives her life stuck in a routine until one encounter with her past changes everything. MxR
1. Sour Times

She kicked the alarm off the bedside table before it even managed to set off. It fell with a klunk and the tiny bell was dislodged. She was awake and she had been awake. She just did not know how long she had been staring off into space. An hour? Two hours? She pulled the sheets over her head again. She can hear the tiny hammer of her alarm hitting nothing. It sounded like her cell on vibrate.

She shifted positions. She tucked her head under her arm. She lay on her belly. She tossed the pillows aside. She smothered herself in her own blanket. She just wanted to go to sleep again and wake up later than she should have.

It took her a while before she realized that her alarm stopped ringing minutes ago.

She rolled off her mattress and found herself on the floor. She pulled herself up and swept the stray strands of hair from her face. She decided that it was the best time to get dressed and ready for work. She was always late for the past few days anyway, perhaps it wouldn't matter now.

* * *

"Akiyama, is that you?" a voice piped up from behind one of the cubicles. She had just stepped into the office, holding a cold waffle she had bought earlier. "Sir Yamada wants to see you."

"Oh."

She shuffled towards her desk and lay down her bag and her waffle. She peeped at the cubicle opposite of hers. "Is he mad, Tanaka?" she asked.

Her officemate looked up from his computer and replied with a shrug. Mio slumped back and sighed. He should be, she thought, the frequencies of her being late had escalated since the previous month and she didn't have enough reasons for them to be valid.

"Why are you late this time anyway?"

"My alarm broke."

"Again? You should really get a new one," he said with his eyebrows raised.

"I'll think about it," she muttered while she walked towards her boss's office.

Mio felt that feeling people usually had when they were nervous. Not the good kind of nervous, the one where your heart felt as if it were pressed hard into your chest and then dropped unkindly towards your stomach kind of nervous. She had every right to be because losing this job would probably mean months of living on her savings. Again.

She had been working in this office for two years already. Her job wasn't that important to the company but she did do the inventory and the paperwork that came along with it. The previous company she worked for suffered an economic set-back and had to downsize. Mio was sadly one of the employees who had to look for a new line of work. She remembered the months of job hunting and living on the small allowance her family supplied for her. She had to sell her Jazz Bass to get by. It was a difficult life.

Lucky for her there was an opening in a small trade shop. The office wasn't that big but it was enough for her to make a living. Her current employer simply sold supplies to other companies. They were just small-time traders but they earn good money.

Mio pressed her palm against the door handle and took in a deep breath. She hesitantly let go and decided to knock first instead.

"Come in," said the muffled voice from the other side of the door.

"Good morning, Mr. Yamada."

"Well, good morning to you too, Akiyama," Yamada replied without taking his eyes away from the monitor. "I'm glad I didn't have to say 'good evening'," He chuckled.

"I'm sorry, sir."

"Take a seat," he turned his attention to Mio. Yamada was a thin man; he wasn't one of those imposing boss-type characters that Mio was used to seeing on TV. If anything else, Yamada was known to be a very laid-back person. He cleaned his spectacles and set them down on his desk. Mio relaxed her shoulders. "How many times have you been late this week, Akiyama?"

"Four, sir."

"That's four out of five," Yamada rested his palms on his desk. "That's a lot of lates for a week. Now, I am a good man, Akiyama, I know it's also my fault for failing to send you memos but that's not entirely the case. Is it? I'm sure you're aware how companies handle employees who are constantly late."

Mio lowered her head. If he asked for a reason for her coming in to work late she wouldn't have any.

"I'm paying for a worker, Akiyama. I know there's not a lot of stuff to do here but I am paying for your presence too. I was so certain I hired a gem when you applied," Yamada mentioned with a very disappointed tone. " I don't know what brought this tardiness upon you, and your work ethics have been failing me as of late as well. You do know that Tanaka has been covering most of your morning duties by now. Well, one thing is for sure, Akiyama, I will not delve into your private life and ask why you're late most of the time but I do hope you change your ways. I miss the efficient and noteworthy Akiyama who was working for me for two years."

"Thank you, Mr. Yamada," Mio replied softly. She also wished that she knew the reason for her lackluster behavior.

"I know that you know this. A lot of people would want your job, and knowing how hard it is to get by these days you have to consider yourself lucky that you're working for me. I will not always be this benevolent; I can always send you back home unemployed. And perhaps I'd hire someone more suited to this line of work," Yamada put his glasses back on and returned to his computer screen. "I'm giving you this day to think about your performance, Akiyama. Meanwhile, I'm cutting your pay to make up for your tardiness and putting you on probation," he hit the enter key and turned to look at Mio again. "Go."

Mio got up and bowed her head. She left his office without another word. She could feel the veins in her neck pulse with anxiety. She thought about life without a steady job; she was sure that she did not want to go through it once more.

She caught Tanaka looking at her from his station; she smiled at him and headed to her desk.

"Did he give you the boot?" he asked.

"No, just a day's suspension. And probation."

"Well, that's better than the boot," he nodded to himself and continued to document the previous shipment of supplies.

"I don't think they can fire me for being too late."

Tanaka gave her his usual shrug. "Do you want to go out for dinner next week?" he added coolly.

"I dunno. I'll think about it," Mio slung her bag over her shoulder. "Hey, do you want my waffle? I-I lost my appetite."

"Yeah, actually I've been eyeing it since you've gone into his office."

* * *

People usually spend their day without work relaxing. Some people shop, watch movies, go on dates, or hang out with friends. Mio couldn't do any of these; she had to budget the rest of her month to suit her cut payroll. Going out would simply make it more difficult for her to divide her money and she needed to save up for a new bass. She decided that the best course of action was to sleep the day away. Until she got her month's pay she'd have to live on noodles again. At least this time she had electricity.

She fished out the keys to her apartment from her coat and was about to push it into the lock when she spotted someone slumped near her door. She backed away, slightly panicked at the thought of having a homeless person residing near her apartment. She thrust her hands into her coat pockets and looked for her cell to call the police. Her heart leapt up into her throat the moment she noticed that she did not have her phone with her.

Mio remembered stories from officemates how there were groups of homeless people who would rob innocent bystanders of their belongings. Sometimes it escalated to murder. Or rape.

A cold chill ran down her spine when she realized that she left her phone in her apartment.

The slumped person moved and Mio stifled a scream.

"Mio?" the person mumbled as he lifted his head groggily.

Mio held up her key in self-defense. If she was quick she thought she could aim for the person's jugular vein and make a run for it. She eyed the slumped person carefully, noticing the clean leather jacket and the number of accessories on his body. She realized that homeless people weren't this nicely dressed but she was still on edge. Crimes don't limit themselves to the homeless anyway.

The person stood up and stretched his limbs. "What? Just because I don't have my trademark band you don't recognize me already?" he grinned at her. Mio was taken aback. This was no homeless person. This wasn't even a man.

"R-ritsu?" Mio stammered and dropped her keys in the process.

* * *

A/N: _Edited all the punctuation and capitalization errors._


	2. Strangers

"I can't believe that you were ready to stab me in the neck with your apartment key," Ritsu laughed. "It's not a bad idea, but still," she rubbed her hand on her neck unknowingly. "I wouldn't have thought that you had it in you."

"Shut up. It's not my fault that you look like a hobo," Mio retorted as she sat down on her couch. She handed Ritsu coffee from her stash of canned drinks. "You should have called me that you were coming," Mio added.

"I was!" Ritsu exclaimed while she popped off the tab on her drink. "Well, I tried to. I didn't know your cell number anymore. No one did," she pressed the cool can onto her lips and took a sip. "Plus, you hardly go online."

"Oh. I just didn't have the time for social networking anymore."

"Hermit."

"Hobo."

"Hey, I'm not homeless," Ritsu grinned as she spread her arms wide in an attempt to show Mio how well off she actually was. She was sporting her brand new jacket, some day-old jeans and old slippers. No other hobo out there would have been able to acquire such a jacket unless they stole it from her. Her slippers on the other hand appeared as if she nabbed it from a homeless person herself.

Mio paid no attention to Ritsu's display. "Then what were you doing on the side of my door?" she asked while she took a seat.

"Wasn't it obvious?" Ritsu chuckled. She walked around Mio's small apartment and took an occasional sip from her drink. "I was waiting for you to come back."

Mio simply watched her friend. She felt embarrassed of her home. There were paper and garbage strewn everywhere. They were mostly old notes, compositions and lyrics that never made it into song. She only had two rooms: her bedroom, which was mostly the entire apartment and her bathroom. Her mattress was still a mess. She noticed how Ritsu never kept her eyes on anything.

"I thought you'd be the CEO by now," Ritsu said in a low voice. She tried to smile to hide her disappointment, but her eyes gave it all away.

"Things don't always go as planned."

They both used to be such close friends. Ritsu used to tell Mio everything and Mio did very much the same. They shared the same love for music, and once they shared the same plan for their future. They both wanted to perform; Ritsu wanted it more than her. But still. It was their dream to live their life on stage and to play music to their hearts content. It didn't matter to them who the other band members were, as long as they had each other they didn't mind.

Then again, not everything goes the way you plan it to be.

"I'm sorry for imposing on you so suddenly," Ritsu apologized and lowered her head.

"It's fine. I'm glad you came," Mio replied. A half-truth. Had Ritsu not come she would have just spent the day idling in her room. Although she did wish that she had known of Ritsu's visit beforehand. She would have hidden everything that bore evidence to her… shame. She had so much mixed feelings about Ritsu's presence that she couldn't even glance at her, she knew she needed a friend right now but after years of hiding from them she just hoped that Ritsu would leave her be.

The air in her apartment grew so quiet that Ritsu could hear her own heartbeat. She attempted to drown it out by tapping her thighs to a different rhythm. She felt so uncomfortable to be in the same room with Mio again. It just wasn't like how it used to be, like when they just crashed into each other's houses and had sleepovers whenever they felt like it. Time without talking to each other had placed such a large gap between them. They both felt the distance that separated them.

Ritsu tossed her can into the garbage bin. She took off her jacket and placed it on a chair. She had such a somber look on her face. She took another glance around the small apartment and asked, "Where's Elizabeth?"

"Long gone," Mio replied. The truth wasn't supposed to come out but Ritsu had already seen the state of living she was in. There was no point in lying now. "I had to sell her."

"You should have called me, you idiot," Ritsu cried out in exasperation.

"It's kind of too late for that now," she said with a weak smile.

"You know I would have helped you out."

"Well, I honestly thought you were worse off than I was," Mio replied sheepishly.

"Just because I wasn't capable of getting a job like you can?" Ritsu didn't mean to make it sound sarcastic but that was how it came out. She let out a sigh. "You didn't have to sell Elizabeth."

She flopped down on the floor and looked up at Mio. She tilted her head to the side in an attempt to comprehend whatever was going through her friend's mind. Mio looked back with the same quiet intensity. She noticed how Ritsu was taller and leaner. There was also an air of maturity around her. Her brown hair was now quite unkempt without her yellow headband but it seemed as if she purposely kept it that way. It was not that hard for Mio to notice the bulge in Ritsu's arms when she flexed. She smiled at the thought that Ritsu was still playing her drums.

Ritsu watched Mio look down at her fingers and touch the calluses that were no longer there. She felt angry at herself and disappointed for imposing on her friend so suddenly and stripping her of her dignity when she finally saw the place she was still living in. This day wasn't starting off well; it was way off than what she had expected. She thought everything would be back the way it was, just like that. She expected stories of Mio's success in the business world. But she had been so naïve, what she saw wasn't success at all. She crossed her arms in thought. Apologizing would probably be the wrong move; she didn't want to give Mio the impression that she pitied her. She needed to do something about this standstill.

She uncrossed her arms and went for the next most logical thing.

"I wanted to come to you but you were so far. I remember how it used to be in that room, when you used to listen to my heart. "

Mio snapped away from her thoughts to see Ritsu rummaging through her papers and reading aloud the lyrics she had written. She leapt from the couch with arms outstretched towards Ritsu who was about to read another line. "Get away from there!" she screamed.

It wasn't a loud thud but they both did crash onto the floor. Mio had her hands clasped around the papers Ritsu was holding and tore them away. Ritsu playfully pushed Mio aside, sat up and rubbed her elbow. "So that's how you office women are these days. Feisty."

Mio immediately crumpled up her lyrics in a ball and threw them in the garbage. "I'd rather you not look through my things," she muttered while straightened her blouse.

"Then I wouldn't have known that you still wrote lyrics. And you're much better now."

"Than 12 years ago? Obviously," Mio spat.

Another moment of silence passed. Mio had her back to Ritsu who was probably looking at her in anticipation.

"I'm sorry, Mio. I just wanted to break the tension. That's all," Ritsu apologized.

She sighed. She was right; the air around them was too tense. It was awkward and uncomfortable and of course it was only in Ritsu's nature to keep the tension at bay. She was glad that that was one aspect of hers that hasn't changed. She picked up the crumpled lyrics from the trash and smoothed them out on the wall. She placed them on her counter and her hand on them. She turned back to her friend and asked, "So, what brings you here, Ritsu?"

"Well, I just decided to visit the old hometown. You know how it's been years, Mio."

"Where have you been anyway?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

"I've been around. Travelling with the band, going places… drumming. That kind of thing," Ritsu smiled. "It's really fun to be with people who love music too. You should know. I dunno, it's just fun… going around Japan, opening for the big guys, being cheered on by people who love listening to you," her voice started to trail away.

Mio could tell how Ritsu was desperately trying to tone down her excitement about her experiences on the road. Ritsu didn't want to sound as if she was bragging about anything . She was well aware of what Mio had gone through and she didn't want to worsen the situation by telling her how fun it really was to be performing. Although, attempting to tone herself down made it difficult for her to share anything and she was starting to wish that she shouldn't have spoken at all.

"Mnnn," was all Mio could say.

Ritsu was exasperated. "You know what, can we go over everything again?"

"Well, you want to have lunch somewhere… else?" Mio suggested, she tried her best to make the situation less awkward than it already was. A good change of location would do well for the both of them.

"Ok good. Lunch sounds great," Ritsu sighed with relief.

"Good," Mio said with a smile. "I'll just change out of these drab clothes and we'll go have lunch at Max Hamburger."

"My treat."

She couldn't help but laugh at the seriousness on Ritsu's face as she said those two words. Ritsu hadn't changed much at all.

* * *

A/N: _Thank you for all the positive reviews! I honestly wasn't expecting that it would keep you guys interested. I hope you enjoyed the 2nd chapter, I do admit that this isn't my best chapter yet. I found it quite challenging to depict the awkwardness between Mio and Ritsu and have some dialog inbetween as well. Hurr. Stay tuned for the next installment, it's probably written better._


	3. Noticed

With only an hour before noon the sun was burning quite hotly on their heads and on their backs. Mio had walked on ahead leaving Ritsu trailing behind. She walked briskly, although she did it with no intention of keeping her distance from her friend. She just has too much in her head to realize how quickly she was moving. Ritsu saw this too differently, she purposely walked slower and allowed the distance between them. She assumed that Mio was angry. Her steps felt heavier with the thought. She should have just called first instead of waited in the hallway; they wouldn't be going through this if she had.

Ritsu too was too focused on her thoughts to have noticed Mio holding the swing door open for her to slip inside.

"Are you ok?" Mio asked as Ritsu passed by her.

"Uh oh, yeah. I'm fine. Just thinking about stuff," Ritsu said with a sheepish grin. She looked at her surroundings and was rather surprised that she was already inside Max Hamburger. It wasn't the same place anymore as if they built it from the ground up. Although, Ritsu thought, the chairs do look comfier than they did years ago. She turned her attention above the registers and at the menu. "Why don't you grab us a table, Mio. I'll order us food. Anything you have in mind?"

Mio turned her eyes to where Ritsu was looking. "Maybe the usual," she smiled and walked away.

Ritsu sorely felt that Mio was punishing her. She looked back at the menu and hoped that her friend's favorite was still available. What surprised her was that the menu had not changed at all.

Mio decided to take the table at the farthest corner of the establishment. She chose the one right next to the window and decided that it would be nice to have something else to look at. She took her seat and rested her head on the palm of her hands. Mio thought. She thought about what they could talk about, she thought about the places Ritsu has been and all the things that she has experienced. It can't all be good. For all she knew, Ritsu could have become a druggie. She couldn't tell.

She bit her lip and let her thoughts take her away to all the possibilities Ritsu had become during their time apart.

Ritsu hauled her nearly full tray and looked around the noisy room. There were people everywhere and everyone had their own business to attend to. After a while of looking around she did manage to spot her friend sitting at the farthest corner. She took in a deep breath and started to think of several things that they could talk about. Her eyebrows furrowed at upon the realization of how hard it actually was.

"And here is the usual, sweetheart," Ritsu held the entire tray in one hand and gestured like a waitress. She removed all the contents swiftly and arranged them on the table. "Your favorite: double-patty with bacon and mushroom sauce, also some coke," she beamed. She spun to the vacant chair, "And to the most amazing drummer in the entire Kyoto region, a crapload of fries," she said as she slid the tray of fries onto the table.

Ritsu claimed her chair and unloaded her fries on the tray. She popped open the packet of ketchup and squeezed it all over her food. She glanced at Mio who had an odd look on her face. Ritsu decided that it was half a smile and half a "what the fuck". Which was a good thing, she thought to herself.

"Remember when Mugi used to work here?" Ritsu grinned.

"Yeah, I do," Mio nodded. "She loved it here."

"I loved it when she worked here. She always upsized my fries."

"She never did that to me," Mio wondered.

"Oh she did, you just didn't notice it."

"What happened to her anyway?"

Ritsu ate a fry from her tray, "No idea. The last I've heard of her she's taken up residence in London with her family. Although, I do know they still own the mansion here."

Mugi did take up residence in London with her family. They decided to set up a chain of music stores there. Being the only heir to the business, Mugi had no time for anything else. Occasionally she does drop by Kyoto to manage the stores and to check on mansion. She doesn't call anyone from Ho-kago when she is in the area, believing that she'd only impose. She does, however, keep her old cellphone address with her at all times in hopes that someone would give her a ring. At this very moment, Mugi, who sported a nice Zara blouse, a very slimming Armani skirt and Prada stilettos while browsing through the latest inventory of Ibanez electric basses, sneezed. She blamed it on the dust.

"So, we're going through all of this again, aren't we?" Ritsu mused.

Mio unwrapped her burger and nodded in agreement, "Yes, we are."

The drummer placed her elbows on the table and twiddled her thumbs. "Alright then," she breathed in and ran her fingers through her hair. Then she nibbled on a fry. "Mio!" she exclaimed.

Mio jumped back in surprise.

"Fancy meeting you here!" Ritsu grinned waving a fry at Mio's general direction.

"What?"

"I mean, of all places. Max Burger! This must be fate," Ritsu said with a sly smile.

Mio felt rather confused with Ritsu's odd behavior.

Ritsu could tell that Mio was just not getting it. "C'mon, years without seeing each other, no contact with each other whatsoever and we meet, out of all places… here," she said as she pressed her finger on the table.

"What are you talking about, Ritsu?"

"All over again?" Ritsu mouthed the words to Mio.

"Oh… Oh!" Mio covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing upon the realization of what Ritsu was trying to do. "Wait wait—" she giggled.

Ritsu forced a crooked smile. At least Mio was giggling again.

"Wow, you're absolutely right!" Mio said with such feigned excitement. Clearly, Mio wasn't good at this but they had to work with something. "How long has it been, Ritsu?"

Ritsu shrugged and stuffed her face with more fries, "Years. Ten? Twelve? I just know that it's been a long time."

"What have you been up to anyway?" Mio asked. She bit into her burger without glancing at Ritsu.

"Well, I'm still a drummer," Ritsu grinned. She picked up two fries and pretended to play the drums with them. They wobbled and shook. One split in half. "I play for a band, On The Shore, have you heard of us?" she asked as she ate the half-fry.

"Mnnn, I don't think so. I haven't been paying attention to music lately," Mio faked a sigh.

Ritsu felt relieved at how well this was all going. "Well, you're missing out. That's what you're doing," she mumbled in pretend disappointment.

"I'm sorry, I just don't have time," Mio apologized. "I don't even know what happened to everyone else."

"Yeah, you don't really attend reunions," Ritsu leant back and slung her arm around her chair. She played with her food.

Mio let out a sigh, "Well, I was… there was…" her words failed her. She couldn't even think of a fake excuse.

Ritsu felt that the conversation was going to go downhill again. "I saw Asuza performing in Tokyo a few months ago," she recovered.

"Oh? How is she, by the way?"

"Still as godly as ever," Ritsu laughed. "Oh god can she still play. She doesn't want to hit the big scenes though; she performs at night clubs and declines all the good offers for big gigs. And big bands," she gestured.

"That's a shame," Mio noted, she took a sip from her soda.

"No no no, not a shame," Ritsu wagged a fry at Mio. "If anything but, I don't think it's a shame. I think," she paused and thought for a bit, "There's a lot of love needed in performing. You should know. I mean, it's like this," she grabbed at the words that eluded her, "you love what you're doing. There's pure passion when your fingers press against the fret, or when your hands clasp around the neck of your bass. You feel the love. You just love what you're doing," Ritsu attempted to explain, her hands started to feel rather cold. She ate another fry. "But that usually changes when you have a leash around your neck. Like your manager, your producers even your own band. You often don't get to play what you want and it's not always that fun. There are always arguments, there are money problems, and there are people who try to cheat you…" Ritsu trailed off.

"You're obviously in a band," Mio pointed out.

"I'm a drummer, Mio. I have to be in a band. I can't really make it solo, now can I? I can't even sing. Not like you. You're a bassist and you can sing, you can make it on your own in the music scene. Not me. Asuza made it. Mugi can make it. Yui can make it. I can't," Ritsu shook her head.

Mio leant back on her chair and forgot that she still had half a burger to finish. "We all had so much fun, didn't we?" she whispered.

Ritsu drank from her cup of soda and nodded in agreement, "It's too late to go back to that now."

"So you don't like being in your band anymore?"

"Nope, not at all," Ritsu grinned and smothered a fry in ketchup. She drew shapes with ketchup on her tray. "I like being part of On The Shore. Sure there minor differences and arguments now and then, but we all love what we're doing. There's no big chain around our necks, yet," she ate another fry. "I'm not going to lie though; I miss Ho-kago Tea Time very much."

Mio feigned a very weak laugh.

They were quiet for a while, Mio remembered the burger she had to finish and Ritsu continued to devour her pile of French fries which were half-way gone.

"How have you been anyway?" Ritsu finally decided to ask.

"I think I fell off the face of the earth," Mio replied with a faint smile. She wiped the corner of her mouth with tissue paper.

Ritsu chuckled. "That would explain why it took forever for me to find you again," she popped another fry into her mouth. "You were the girl I just couldn't google."

Mio was taken aback by this statement. "What? I thought you said this was fate?" she said slyly.

"Oh, uhhh," Ritsu forgot about playing along.

"But really, though, you went here because of me?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

"Haaaaa…" she crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "Well, you were more of a side-quest in my journeys. But still, you were a very important side-quest," she raised her finger in gesture and kept one eye shut. Ritsu still liked to look bad-ass.

Mio took a bite from her burger. She was almost done. "So what is your main mission then, oh great Ritsu?"

Ritsu planted her palms on the table and leant towards Mio. Their faces were dangerously close. Mio shifted uncomfortably in her seat, Ritsu's gaze was too much for her. Those hazel eyes seemed to look into her very being. She couldn't help but turn away.

Ritsu leaned back on her chair and scratched her cheek. A smile crept to the corner of her mouth. "I have to deliver a letter. I don't have it with me now, it's on my jacket. In it, actually. Pocket," she explained.

"Have?" Mio swept away a stray hair from her face. "You mean you haven't delivered it yet?"

She focused her attention outside, "The guy I had to deliver it to isn't here at the moment. He's on vacation like me, but unlike me it's not here."

"Who is this guy anyway?"

"Not someone you know, since you fell off the face of the earth," Ritsu smirked. "Anyway, he's an ex-band member from On The Shore. Our fuck-awesome bassist. Well, he used to be. Ex-member," she pointed out.

"What happened to him?" Mio asked. She just realized how she kept asking the questions. Still, she didn't mind. She was better off asking than answering anyway.

"He had more important things to do than play with the band."

Mio felt a pang of guilt. It all sounded so familiar.

Ritsu pressed her fingers to her lips as she stared off outside. Mio quietly observed. They both didn't feel like finishing off the food left on their tray. They both wandered into a place that shouldn't have been brought up.

"You should finish your burger," Ritsu pointed to the half-eaten thing on Mio's tray.

"You should finish your fries," replied Mio defiantly.

"Oh I will," she grinned genuinely. "You're talking to Ritsu Tainaka here," she stuffed the fries into her mouth. Her fingers were stained red with ketchup.

"About the letter," Mio mused, "couldn't you just leave it on his doorstep? Slip it under his door?"

"It's too important for that. It has to be given hand to hand. Heart to heart," Ritsu laughed at herself. Mio could tell how forced this laugh was. Ritsu wiped the mess off her fingers with a napkin. "I'll find time to give it, don't worry. Right now, I have to complete my side-quest," she looked at Mio's unfinished meal. "Finish your burger, woman, so we can go somewhere else," she said before gulping down her soda.

Mio swallowed a bite and asked, "Go where?"

Ritsu simply shrugged and smiled.

* * *

A/N: _Thank you for waiting~_


	4. Just Us

"Don't you have work today?" asked Ritsu who was now keeping her pace with Mio. She only noticed how it was a Wednesday, and how people usually work on Wednesdays despite how fine and dandy the weather was. She leaped onto the sidewalk's flowerboxes and balanced herself as they walked on.

"I have the day off," Mio replied

"Really?" Ritsu turned to look at her. "Why did you take the day off? Wait! Don't tell me, you were supposed to do something today, weren't you? Oh man, I knew I was getting in the way," she slammed the palm of her hand onto her forehead. She missed a step and almost fell.

Mio was too focused on whatever it was infront of her to notice Ritsu's almost-accident. Ritsu hopped down from the flowerbox and brushed off the imaginary dirt from her tank top.

"I don't really have anything planned for today. I was just going to sleep the entire day off," Mio explained.

"So… you don't really have work on Wednesdays?"

"Not exactly."

"What? So, you took the day off because you wanted to sleep in? Why were you dressed up in office clothes this morning then?" Ritsu was quite perplexed. She knew that it wasn't Mio's habit to skip anything just to sleep in. The more Ritsu thought about it, the more it didn't make sense.

"Well," Mio let her voice trail off. "My boss, Mr. Yamada, he let me off today."

"He fired you?"

"No, you idiot," Mio snapped back. Her cheeks felt hot, lying just made her uncomfortable. "I was given the day off today because… I don't know."

Ritsu opened her mouth to say something, but then she decided that it wasn't a good idea. She bit her lower lip instead.

Mio sighed and said, "Where are you taking me anyway?"

"Huh?" the other girl was taken by surprise. "What are you talking about? I was following you."

"What. You were the one who said we were going somewhere after lunch."

"But, you were leading the way!" Ritsu whined.

"I wasn't leading the way!"

"You were ahead of me, so I assumed that there was somewhere you'd like to go," she reasoned.

Mio sighed, "Well, I'm not leading the way and I don't know where we're going."

They both stopped walking and looked at each other on the sidewalk. Ritsu pressed her finger on her forehead. "I didn't really have an idea of where we're going to chill out next but we're both going to have to go somewhere," she said with her smile. "Wanna go to the park?"

"I don't really have anything else in mind."

Mio felt the sweat trickle down her back. She took off her jacket and wrapped it around her waist. Ritsu wandered off ahead of her, she couldn't help but notice how the sweat on her skin glistened under the sun. "Don't you think it's too hot for the park right now, Ritsu?" she called out.

Ritsu ran her fingers through her hair and looked straight up into the sky. "Well it is hot," she noted. She spun towards Mio and looked into her blue-grey eyes. "But they do still have trees in the park, right? We can just stay under the shade and pass the time."

"I just don't see how going to the park now is a—Ritsu?"

Ritsu was already half-running to the other side of the road. From where she stood she could already see what caught her friend's attention, it was an old abandoned house. The Shibata house, if she could remember correctly, their old school-mate's pad. It was one of the biggest houses in the district. It even had a pool. Ritsu turned back to look at her and gestured to Mio to follow.

Mio made sure to look both ways before crossing the street. Ritsu was already peering through the rusty old gate. "They sure let the place go," she commented.

Mio approached her from behind and looked up at the dilapidated building. The roof was almost collapsing and almost all the windows have broken. There were patches of dead grass on their lawn but some areas were overgrown with thick bushes. They both remembered how much better it looked during their school days. "It looks… empty," was all Mio could say.

"You didn't want to go the park yet, right?" Ritsu felt the sinister smile forming on her lips.

"What are you implying?" Mio frowned. "Don't you even try, Ritsu. The gate's locked."

Ritsu pressed her weight onto the old gate. There was a snap and it slowly swung open. She looked at Mio with a bigger grin on her face. The expression on Mio's was unpleasant.

"There's no harm in going in now," said Ritsu.

"We're trespassing. You're trespassing," Mio said flatly.

"No one would really mind. It's clearly empty. It'd be like the good old days!" Ritsu held Mio's hand and brought it to her face. "Please?" she pleaded.

Mio looked at the building again she can only imagine the safety hazards it possessed—the broken glass, the weak floorboards, all that dust, snakes, rats… a serial killer. She felt a shiver run up her spine. The blood drained from her hands. She removed her hand from Ritsu's calloused palm.

"The good old days? I don't really remember any memory of us wandering into other people's houses," Mio said bitterly.

Ritsu frowned. She realized how the good old days were all at the expense of Mio's fears. She wiped the sweat off her brow with the back of her hand. "I really want to go look around," she coaxed. "No scare tactics, Mio, I promise. Besides, it doesn't really look that hot inside. And aren't you curious?"

They both recalled how the Shibatas didn't let any guests inside the house. The patriarch of the house was the one who earned for the entire family. He was rich but he was also insane and rather paranoid.

Ritsu looked at Mio expectantly. Mio took another look at the building that was on the verge of collapse. She didn't say anything. "I didn't think you'd still be such a scaredy-cat," Ritsu teased.

There was a flash of annoyance in Mio's eyes but a smile still formed on her lips. "You're provoking me aren't you?"

Ritsu shrugged and threw her head towards the house. "Well if that's what it takes to get you to come with me."

"It's not working."

Mio's fingers clamped tightly around Ritsu's arm while they walked down the weedy path. Ritsu had that smile on her face that made Mio want to punch her. "I can't believe that I let you talk me into this," she said with a scowl.

"It can't believe that it worked," replied Ritsu.

"What if someone sees us?"

"Geez, Mio. It's not going to be that big a deal. We'll just say we're prospectors looking for a place to set up our motel or something."

"You mean proprietors."

"Uh, yeah… proprietors. That's what I meant."

They walked on the cracked pavement where the grass and weeds poked from niches and holes. There were brambles, dried up twigs and leaves, and things that Mio could not even guess what they used to be. Something scampered in the bushes. She accidentally twisted Ritsu's arm in fright.

"Hey, ow!"

Mio apologized under her breath. Perhaps it served Ritsu right for brining her into this place.

Ritsu rubbed her arm to ease the slightly burning sensation. "Remember how nice this place used to be? I mean it had this really nice garden like one of those western houses and they had those five Rottweilers that barked at us whenever we passed by. I wonder where they went. I wonder how long they've been gone. You think Mr. Shibata finally snapped?"

Mio only nodded.

They stopped at the foyer and it was by this time that Mio firmly decided that there was no way on earth that they would step inside. The door was already open; there were odd nonsense graffiti on the walls, there was a layer of dust on the floor where the vandals didn't tread on. Maybe there were drug addicts still in there who were bored out of their minds and waiting for someone to come in so they can have some 'entertainment'. Mio, once again, could feel the palms of her hand grow cold and dampen with sweat.

"I'm not going in there," she said firmly.

"But we've already gone this far," replied Ritsu with a very obvious tone of disappointment. "Aren't you curious about what it looks from the inside?"

Mio imagined the room where they all hid the bodies of the victims in organized crimes. She remembered a show that she saw a week ago where there was this young lady who just died in their house and no one knew. She rotted in there alone until two kids found her while they were exploring the empty house. They could be the two kids to the corpse.

"I just can't," her voice wavered. She let go of Ritsu's arm. "I'm sorry, but I can't go through this."

"Oh come on, there's nothing to be scared off. There aren't any wild animals in there. There are no monsters, no murderers and no homeless people as I can tell," Ritsu reassured her.

"How can you be so sure? There are footprints all over the place there are scrawls and everything else on the walls!"

"Well, we'll ask the house. I'm going to yell in there and ask if there is anyone around, and if someone replies we'll leave."

Mio thought that this was the stupidest thing she has ever heard of.

Ritsu walked over to the open door and peered inside. She took in a deep breath and yelled, "Is anyone in here?" Mio was startled by the rustle of leaves from behind her. It was probably some hooligans running away. She held her breath and tried – but failed—to not think of frightening things. Ritsu turned to her with a triumphant smile. "See? There's no one in there," she assured her. "Unless of course there's a ghost…"

Mio scowled. "I'm not going in there."

"But there's no one inside!"

"That's not the point, Ritsu!" Mio yelled. Her hand balled up into a fist.

"I'll hold your hand. I won't let go and I won't say anything scary. I won't even talk at all," she pleaded.

"I don't get it. Why is this such a big deal to you for me to go in there? You can go in there, I'm not stopping you. I just can't—I just can't. I'll wait here for you," she told her friend with a soft smile on her face to hide the surfacing fear.

Ritsu resigned from her urging, "Ok, I'll go in there alone," she sighed. "I'm telling you, if I find gold I am not sharing." Ritsu stepped inside the abandoned house that was filled with nothing but dust, cobwebs and trash from kids who probably hang out there from time to time. Mio waited outside with her back turned towards the garden.

She could hear Ritsu's footsteps inside the house. She panicked a bit when she realized that something might jump at her from the garden. She turned towards the garden that was almost a jungle, but then the fear of Ritsu or someone else attacking her from the house made her spin around and eye the open door. She didn't want to be afraid anymore and wanted to leave the lot. It was frightening. She felt no solace or peace with where she was. Anything could attack her from any side. She sat down on the steps and covered her ears.

She began to feel how helpless she was and how she should have gone in with Ritsu. At least if she had gone in inside the house Ritsu will most definitely be there even if she was frightened out of her wits. Out here, she was alone and scared. She tried to rationalize it- how the chances of being killed in there were big. She didn't know the place inside well enough to plot an escape route. Out here, she'd just run for the street. She gulped. She'd been a horrible friend to have Ritsu go in such a dangerous place. Alone. She could die in there. Mio bit her lip. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself if that happened even if it was Ritsu's fault to begin with.

There was a crash followed by a thud and a yell. Mio stood up immediately with her heart pounding in her throat. It was Ritsu's yell. Ritsu's hurt. Images of Ritsu dying and bleeding and assaulted racked her brain. Those vandals with knives, bats and other weapons. Angry at Ritsu for trespassing in their base. Beating Ritsu. Hurting her. The thought that she has fallen from the second floor came to mind. Ritsu with her limbs broken, and almost dying, and if she were to survive she would never be able play the drums again. Mio was scared. She was deathly worried. All these thoughts in her head made her weak.

"Ritsu?" she called out to the inside of the house. Her hands were shaking visibly. There was no answer "Ritsu?" she called out again. Louder this time.

"Mio?" a weak voice replied.

She ran into the house without a second thought. "Where are you?" she looked where she could. She walked around looking for Ritsu and unsettled most the dust along the way. She wandered into the corridors and slid open all the doors. She hated how much bigger the house was from the inside. "Ritsu?"

"I'm here," came the distant reply. "The stairs."

Mio sped up her pace. "Are you alone?" her voice shook.

"Yeah, pretty much."

She found her way to the back of the house and saw Ritsu sitting on the ground with her back towards her. Mio suddenly felt furious, "That's low of you, Ritsu. Yelling like that to get me in here," she yelled angrily. Ritsu didn't move. Mio raised her hand and wanted to strike her friend until she noticed the broken and splintered steps on the staircase.

"The termites ate through the wood," explained Ritsu without turning to her friend. "And I didn't really ask for you to come in here. No wait don't look—"

Mio walked around Ritsu and saw the copious amount of blood through the ripped jeans. No sound could escape her mouth. All the color drained from her face.

"It's just a cut, Mio. It's not really as bad as it looks," Ritsu explained quickly. She tried to cover the blood up with her hands. "Mio? Mio?"

Mio's knees gave under her weight. She can only remember Ritsu's panicked voice.

* * *

A/N: _Sorry if it took so long, this was a lot harder to write for some reason and I had less time to do so. Classes are starting again tomorrow, I'll find time for this fic somehow. Also, on a completely unrelated note... watch Kanamemo. Yuuki and Yume are both completely worth it. They need more love._


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